The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1887-12-03
RELIGIOUS JOURNALISM.

OF periodical literature which make it
go, and which are sometimes mistaken
the one for the other. One of these is
a genuine literary ambition, and the
other is an itch for type. By the one
man or woman is drawn toward litera-
ture as life.work, as Irving and Long
fellow and others were; or toward Jour-
nalism as profession, as Greeley was.
This is a rational passion. 1t grows
out of demonstrated aptness for the
work, and willingness to count all
things but loss for success in it. We
speak of Irving and Longfellow as we'll
known types of this class. They turned
their backs upon lucrative offers in
other callings, and made long and costly
preparation for work that was most
difficult and pecuniarily most unprom-
Using. We do not know of successful
editor who was not filled with the same
spirit. Greeley was only one of many
like him. Halstead, of the Cincinnati
Commercial Gazette, had an experience
not unlike Greeley's. We heard him
say in the darkest day of his obsculity
and toll, "I'll stick to my chosen pro-
fession if starve to death for it,
Whitelaw Reid had better time,
though we knew him as the obscure
editor of little country paper, The
Xenia Ne,Cs. These men chose their
profession after rational considera-
ton of their fitness for it, and then de-
voted every fiber of energy of body and
soul to making success.
A man who thinks he can win in the
intense competition of these times
which is short in journalism, as in many
other departments of activity without
first, fitness; second, thorough training;
and third, indomitable grit is a-rather
let us say egregiously mistaken. Demon
inationalism can not sequester to itself
special journalistic fields, where the pet
idea can come to the surface every week
for the edification of the few interested.
The day for that has gone by, and as
much or more for Universalists as any
other. There are numbers of able and
attractive religious journals outside,
which are not very Objectionable to
the average Universalist-tho who
hold fast to the Scriptures and to Christ,
and to future state in which eternal
love shall rule. The Universalist jour
nal that prospers, must be prepared to
compete with such able and attractive
outside religious journals on equal
terms in the open field, and if Uni
versalists are not willing to see fair
play for their own journals in such a
contest, they are made of a mighty
poor sort of human clay.
The other incentive to periodical Jour
nalism is the cacoetheS, itch-insect. 1t
is this itch which impels men who have
made no preparation, have no training,
no experience, to push into what they
call journalism, and try their hand in
an experimental kind of way. There is
no good sense in it-no well informed
OOhO1uCldU1OA vi UlO ways AOduS
of prospects and possibilities. To es-
tablish paper that will compete with
its rivals in and out of denomination
requires a great sum of money. We
know of no first class religious paper
that has cost less than hundred thous-
| and dollars before it came to self
sustaining basis The Advance and the
Interior are good examples in orthodox
journalism; they have each cost in
round numbers the above named sum.
We venture to say that THE UNIvERs-
ALIsT, and the papers which it repre-
sents in it's present circulation, taken
from the start, has cost more than that
that counting fair living salaries to
those who have wrought upon them,
and the hard cash actually sunk in forty
years, it would overrun that great sum.
For man to undertake to start reli-
gious paper without considering these
facts, shows a lack of newspaper ex-
perience that would make wreck of the
best possibilities.
Just now there seems to be quite an
epidemic of journalism of the local sort
all NJ amer and kinds of small papers
are starting up in the various denomina-
tions, devoted to churches, associations
and all kinds of religious experiment.
Very often these are advertising
schemes for the things in which they
are interested; but again it happens
they are of another order, little person
al balloons sent up to test the state of
the atmosphere for larger adventures.
While it is not to be deemed these little
experiments are hurtful 70 general jour-
nalism, interfering to small extent
here and there with the benefits which
first-class paper would confer upon
family, they have compensating in
fluences. They will purchase the need
ed wisdom before the larger outlay is
made or attempted. The slight venti-
lation of the various idiosyncrasies of
opinion which they may reveal will also
show the world what is probably lost
on account of their failure to occupy
the wider field. These little papers no
doubt relieve surplus of individual